Aisea Tuidraki and Sakaraia Serau sentenced to 9 months imprisonment for abuse of office

Former Special Administrator for the Nadi Town Council Aisea Tuidraki and former Acting Chief Executive Officer of the council, Sakaraia Serau have each been sentenced to 9 months imprisonment for abuse of office.

High Court Judge, Justice Paul Madigan has also sentenced Nadi Town Council’s former Clerical Officer responsible for rates accounting, Suresh Chand to 6 months imprisonment suspended for 2 years.

According to FICAC’s charges, Aisea Tuidraki and Sakaraia Serau, between the 8^th to the 17^th of December 2009, whilst being employed as the Special Administrator and Acting CEO, in abuse of the authority of their office did an arbitrary act for the purpose of gain, wrote off the rate and interest payable amounting to $86,792 for Prajay Investments without the approval of the Minister of Local Government which is an act prejudicial to the rights of the Nadi Town Council and the ratepayers of Nadi Town.

Suresh Chand entered a plea of guilty to 4 counts of abuse of office in that on four separate occasions, he wrote off rates and interest accrued without the approval of the Minister for Local Government in abuse of his office.

Justice Madigan said that the evidence in the trial showed the active part Tuidraki and Serau played in the abuse of office to favour a Prem Singh.

Justice Madigan says Tuidraki told the court in his own words that he directed the Rates Clerk to write off the $86,000 for the ratepayer.